Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1887-07-26
The FESTIVE DRUMMER.


A Class OF Honest ana Chthusass'c +>"'
sances who Never Dia
All Investigations by psychologists
into the various races and their history
break on an inexplicable influence that
seems to connect widely different places,
periods and peoples. They find old jars
in use In India that the mound-builders
had here. and they come across iron
teaspoons in the primeval forest beds OF
coal. They are astonished to find the
cridiron of the north Of ireland iigur-
ing In tie social life Of China three or
four thousand years ago The Bedouin
Arab has the army blanket of the Es-
auilnaux. and in the ruins OF Pompeii
they come across peanut shells like
what the sweeper sweeps out OF the
gallery of the theater to-day. Well.
why is thisP Archaologists can not
tell. lean The mysterious ubiquitous
influence that Leaves no track save the
article is simply the drummer u was
the drummer who dill it all. lie left
those curious Grceian scrolls In Egypt;
he carved those heiroglyphics on
the rocks OF ancient Britain; he Is
the man who introduced French candy
Into Hercu sneum and stuck the
mound builders with iron teaspoons,
Do Won ever know what becomes VI
drumms3 Not that you care, but have
Won ever seen dead drummer l
don't believe drummcrs die. I believe
they simply talk themselves into gas.
Gas thou art, 10 gas returnest, was
written of the drummer ] have met
on@ or two men who have been drum
mers hut they do not talk much about
it. When drummer gets tired Of talk
ing he Just disappears. lido not see
how this country survives the existence
Of drummers. Yon 90 into small
country place; you step into the hotel;
you find in the office sixteen coats hang
ing upon the wall and sixteen yalises
In row on the floor, and sixteen nun
sitting with tlieif thirty-two feet upon
the stove. telling sixteen lies about
their business aud lhcir adventures, all
nj one time. You can't get what You
want Ia that town. The drummcrs
have made the storekeepers buy what
they have to sell, and you've got to
take II or 20 without. 1t seems almost
impossible TO believe that drummer
should ever be able to disguise his
identity. Iie il. us a rule, aggressive
and runs things.
II You see man come into the office
of an hotel and step up timidly 10 the
counter and ask the clerk II there are
any letters for him, please, YOU may
know that he's a humble private citizen
and plain guest, II you see fellow
slng open the door. stride In and leave
It open behind him. go and hang his
coat on peg, and, jam his valisc on the
floor. walk behind the counter. take out
all the letters and read the addresses
from every box. open the drawer and
look in, then youll know its a drummer
good for one nights lodging and sew
eral drinks. He generally lets every
body know that he's sold u lot of stuff,
and he talks very loud about the fun
has had sometimes. But they told me
Of one drummer who called himself y
Count, and wore Il long fur-lined ulster
and an imposing foreign-looking mus
tache. lie came in the summer season
and staid long time. He was the rage;
the girls fell il love with him; the
nlammas admired him; he was on the
eve Of getting engaged TO 4 naughty
san Francisco belle, when alady walked
into a drug store one day and found him
with II tot OF samples Of soap. trying To
stick the proprietor with his stock.
Tint let him out and he disappeared.
Bat the profession disowned him, for,
as rule. the drummer is straightfor-
ward. open, honest aud enthusiastic
nuisance san Francisco Chronicle.